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sprawl - 4 dictionary results
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sprawl
[sprawl] 
–verb (used without object)
| 1. | to be stretched or spread out in an unnatural or ungraceful manner: The puppy's legs sprawled in all directions. |
| 2. | to sit or lie in a relaxed position with the limbs spread out carelessly or ungracefully: He sprawled across the bed. |
| 3. | to spread out, extend, or be distributed in a straggling or irregular manner, as vines, buildings, handwriting, etc. |
| 4. | to crawl awkwardly with the aid of all the limbs; scramble. |
–verb (used with object)
| 5. | to stretch out (the limbs) as in sprawling. |
| 6. | to spread out or distribute in a straggling manner. |
–noun
| 7. | the act or an instance of sprawling; a sprawling posture. |
| 8. | a straggling array of something. |
Origin:
bef. 1000; ME spraulen to move awkwardly, OE spreawlian; c. Fris (N dial.) spraweli
bef. 1000; ME spraulen to move awkwardly, OE spreawlian; c. Fris (N dial.) spraweli
Related forms:
sprawler, noun
sprawl⋅ing⋅ly, adverb
Synonyms:
3. straggle, branch.
3. straggle, branch.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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|
Link To sprawl
| sprawl (sprôl) v. sprawled, sprawl·ing, sprawls v. intr.
To cause to spread out in a straggling or disordered fashion. n.
[Middle English sprawlen, from Old English sprēawlian, to writhe; see sper- in Indo-European roots.] sprawl'er n. |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Sprawl
Sprawl\ (spr[add]l), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Sprawled (spr[add]ld); p. pr. & vb. n. Sprawling.] [OE. spraulen; cf. Sw. sprattla to sprawl, dial. Sw. spralla, Dan. sp[ae]lle, spr[ae]lde, D. spartelen, spertelen, to flounder, to struggle.]1. To spread and stretch the body or limbs carelessly in a horizontal position; to lie with the limbs stretched out ungracefully. 2. To spread irregularly, as vines, plants, or tress; to spread ungracefully, as chirography. 3. To move, when lying down, with awkward extension and motions of the limbs; to scramble in creeping. The birds were not fledged; but upon sprawling and struggling to get clear of the flame, down they tumbled. --L'Estrange.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : sprawl
Italian:
abbandonarsi,
German:
alle Viere von sich strecken,
Japanese:
手足を伸ばす
sprawl
O.E. spreawlian "move convulsively," with cognates in the Scand. languages and N.Fris. spraweli, probably ult. from PIE base *sper- "to strew" (see sprout). Meaning "to spread or stretch in a careless manner" is attested from 1541; of things, from 1745. The noun is first attested 1719; meaning "straggling expansion of built-up districts into surrounding countryside" is from 1955.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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